HMS Diamond. Photo courtesy UK Royal Navy
The United Kingdom is redeploying one of its most technologically advanced warships, HMS Diamond, to the Red Sea. The move comes as part of the UK’s broader operation to safeguard international commercial shipping from Houthi attacks.
HMS Diamond is replacing HMS Richmond, which has served in the U.S.-led Operation Prosperity Guardian since February. The international coalition, launched in mid-December, focuses on protecting commercial shipping vessels from Houthi attacks. Notably, HMS Richmond recently thwarted a Houthi drone attack in the southern Red Sea, marking the first UK warship combat use of Sea Ceptor missiles.
The UK’s wider response to Houthi aggression includes intercepting arms smuggling to Yemen, implementing sanctions against the Houthis, and launching targeted strikes against their military bases in Yemen.
Fitted with the Sea Ceptor missile system, HMS Richmond is equipped to provide protection against airborne threats, including enemy jets, helicopters, and other missiles. After its relief by HMS Diamond, the ship will dock in Saudi Arabia for maintenance and resupply before returning to the UK.
UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps emphasized the Royal Navy’s crucial role in safeguarding global shipping. “Britain continues to be at the forefront of the international response to the Houthis’ dangerous attacks on commercial vessels, which have claimed the lives of international mariners,” he said.
Previously deployed in the region in December and January, the destroyer successfully neutralized nine drones in three separate Houthi attacks, using her Sea Viper missile system and onboard weaponry.
Since leaving Portsmouth in late November, HMS Diamond has patrolled nearly 20,000 nautical miles, equivalent to a global circumnavigation. Its Wildcat helicopter crew, having flown over 53 hours of missions above the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, is among the busiest in the Royal Navy.
In a statement, the Ministry of Defense reiterated the UK’s commitment to deterring the Houthis’ indiscriminate Red Sea and Gulf of Aden attacks. “The Houthis’ illegal attacks have claimed the lives of international mariners and continue to harm the global economy and undermine the stability and security of Yemen,” it said.
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